Commissioners react to regional utility authority bill

Published: Thursday, March 28, 2013 at 5:28 p.m.

Last Modified: Thursday, March 28, 2013 at 5:28 p.m.

Henderson County's sewer system would become part of a regional water and sewer authority, with the county having three votes on a 15-member governing board, under legislation introduced Thursday by N.C. Rep. Chuck McGrady and two Republican colleagues Thursday.

Under House Bill 488, the county's Cane Creek Water and Sewer Authority — which serves about 3,200 customers in Mills River and Fletcher — would merge with Buncombe County's Metropolitan Sewerage District and the city of Asheville's water system.

The newly created Metropolitan Water and Sewerage District would save area utility customers millions of dollars annually, according to bill co-sponsors McGrady, Rep. Tim Moffitt and Rep. Nathan Ramsey. But the bill is highly contentious.

Asheville has vigorously resisted giving up control of its water resources, while Henderson County commissioners have previously balked at merging Cane Creek's sewer system with MSD if the county didn't have “meaningful representation” on a regional utility board.

As proposed, the regional authority would give Asheville, Buncombe County and Henderson County three seats each on the 15-member board, with one seat each for the towns of Biltmore Forest, Black Mountain, Montreat, Weaverville and Woodfin and the Woodfin Water and Sewer District.

One of Henderson County's members on the board would have to be chosen by the county from three names submitted by the town of Mills River. McGrady said that was included because Mills River “is really impacted by the (city's) water plant,” which restricts development upstream.

“The key from Henderson County's perspective is, by being part of a regional authority, they actually now have a voice and a place at the table with regard to issues related to water,” McGrady said. “Up to now, that's hasn't been true.”

But a majority of Henderson County commissioners interviewed Thursday said they don't think three seats on a 15-member board is adequate, and said they'd seek to tweak their representation when the bill moves to the Senate.

“I think we've got to rework it,” said Chairman Charlie Messer. “They've offered us three (seats) for some time. We've said it would take at least four.”

Messer said a new consultant's study showing the county could build its own wastewater treatment plant at two potential sites in Fletcher for roughly $29 million gives the county bargaining power, along with a Mills River water treatment plant “that's never been paid for. We have two aces in the hole now.”

Commissioner Mike Edney, who sat for several years on the old regional water authority board, agreed the county deserves more than three seats.

“If I were writing the bill, I would have Henderson County with about 50 percent of the representation because over the next 20-30 years, the population that's now in south Buncombe is going to migrate into here,” he said. “So our interests are going to be more acute in a relatively short period of time than they are right now.”

Commissioner Larry Young wants more details from Davis & Young, the consulting firm that conducted the study, about the county's options, but said he's leaning toward the county building its own sewer plant and staying “self-sufficient.”

Three votes on a 15-member board isn't enough, he added, “because that means the others are going to vote with the city of Asheville.”

But McGrady said there's no basis for giving Henderson County more seats than Buncombe or Asheville because “you have to look at the number of customers and in terms of what's being invested.” The city had 30,338 sewer customers in 2011, with $19 million in billings, compared to 3,125 accounts and $961,154 from Cane Creek.

“They're getting three seats, but they're getting three seats at a table that includes water,” McGrady said about Henderson County. “That's what they wanted in 1995, and back then, they only had two seats. Moreover, I think it's a really good deal in not having to build a sewer plant.”

McGrady said Cane Creek's inclusion in the authority makes sense, since MSD's wastewater treatment plant in Woodfin already treats about .7 million gallons a day of Henderson County sewage. The merger would also lower rates for Cane Creek customers, McGrady said, saving the average rate payer roughly $120 per year.

This is not the first attempt at creating a regional water and sewer authority. In 1994-95, fearing a water shortage, Asheville City Council and Buncombe County commissioners got together with Henderson County's board and agreed to “work in good faith to achieve a consolidated, independent utility authority.”

That deal allowed for construction of a water intake at the confluence of the Mills and French Broad rivers in Henderson County. But the city terminated the three-party agreement in 2004, after disagreeing with Buncombe County over fees for maintaining the water system.

The loss of two industries — a Gerber baby food plant and Ball bottle plant — also had reduced the city's thirst, according to county officials.

“They built this very nice technology in Mills River, but it cost a lot to run,” recalled Edney. “About that time, Ball and Gerber closed down, so they had a huge water plant with very expensive water and nobody to use it. The necessity of partnering with Henderson County went away and my opinion is, once they knew they didn't need us, they stabbed us in the back (by terminating the agreement).”

The abiding distrust among former allies is why the General Assembly felt compelled to mandate a regional authority, McGrady said.

“People keep asking, why is the General Assembly jumping on this? Because the General Assembly wants to resolve these long-standing issues related to water and sewer and get on with other things. Water, in particular, has been a source of friction about every 20 years. Frankly, we want to get that behind us.”

H.B. 488 will be read on the House floor on Tuesday, April 2, before being referred to several committees.

<p>Henderson County's sewer system would become part of a regional water and sewer authority, with the county having three votes on a 15-member governing board, under legislation introduced Thursday by N.C. Rep. Chuck McGrady and two Republican colleagues Thursday.</p><p>Under House Bill 488, the county's Cane Creek Water and Sewer Authority — which serves about 3,200 customers in Mills River and Fletcher — would merge with Buncombe County's Metropolitan Sewerage District and the city of Asheville's water system. </p><p>The newly created Metropolitan Water and Sewerage District would save area utility customers millions of dollars annually, according to bill co-sponsors McGrady, Rep. Tim Moffitt and Rep. Nathan Ramsey. But the bill is highly contentious.</p><p>Asheville has vigorously resisted giving up control of its water resources, while Henderson County commissioners have previously balked at merging Cane Creek's sewer system with MSD if the county didn't have “meaningful representation” on a regional utility board.</p><p>As proposed, the regional authority would give Asheville, Buncombe County and Henderson County three seats each on the 15-member board, with one seat each for the towns of Biltmore Forest, Black Mountain, Montreat, Weaverville and Woodfin and the Woodfin Water and Sewer District.</p><p>One of Henderson County's members on the board would have to be chosen by the county from three names submitted by the town of Mills River. McGrady said that was included because Mills River “is really impacted by the (city's) water plant,” which restricts development upstream.</p><p>“The key from Henderson County's perspective is, by being part of a regional authority, they actually now have a voice and a place at the table with regard to issues related to water,” McGrady said. “Up to now, that's hasn't been true.”</p><p>But a majority of Henderson County commissioners interviewed Thursday said they don't think three seats on a 15-member board is adequate, and said they'd seek to tweak their representation when the bill moves to the Senate.</p><p>“I think we've got to rework it,” said Chairman Charlie Messer. “They've offered us three (seats) for some time. We've said it would take at least four.”</p><p>Messer said a new consultant's study showing the county could build its own wastewater treatment plant at two potential sites in Fletcher for roughly $29 million gives the county bargaining power, along with a Mills River water treatment plant “that's never been paid for. We have two aces in the hole now.”</p><p>Commissioner Mike Edney, who sat for several years on the old regional water authority board, agreed the county deserves more than three seats.</p><p>“If I were writing the bill, I would have Henderson County with about 50 percent of the representation because over the next 20-30 years, the population that's now in south Buncombe is going to migrate into here,” he said. “So our interests are going to be more acute in a relatively short period of time than they are right now.”</p><p>Commissioner Larry Young wants more details from Davis & Young, the consulting firm that conducted the study, about the county's options, but said he's leaning toward the county building its own sewer plant and staying “self-sufficient.” </p><p>Three votes on a 15-member board isn't enough, he added, “because that means the others are going to vote with the city of Asheville.”</p><p>But McGrady said there's no basis for giving Henderson County more seats than Buncombe or Asheville because “you have to look at the number of customers and in terms of what's being invested.” The city had 30,338 sewer customers in 2011, with $19 million in billings, compared to 3,125 accounts and $961,154 from Cane Creek.</p><p>“They're getting three seats, but they're getting three seats at a table that includes water,” McGrady said about Henderson County. “That's what they wanted in 1995, and back then, they only had two seats. Moreover, I think it's a really good deal in not having to build a sewer plant.”</p><p>McGrady said Cane Creek's inclusion in the authority makes sense, since MSD's wastewater treatment plant in Woodfin already treats about .7 million gallons a day of Henderson County sewage. The merger would also lower rates for Cane Creek customers, McGrady said, saving the average rate payer roughly $120 per year. </p><p>This is not the first attempt at creating a regional water and sewer authority. In 1994-95, fearing a water shortage, Asheville City Council and Buncombe County commissioners got together with Henderson County's board and agreed to “work in good faith to achieve a consolidated, independent utility authority.” </p><p>That deal allowed for construction of a water intake at the confluence of the Mills and French Broad rivers in Henderson County. But the city terminated the three-party agreement in 2004, after disagreeing with Buncombe County over fees for maintaining the water system. </p><p>The loss of two industries — a Gerber baby food plant and Ball bottle plant — also had reduced the city's thirst, according to county officials.</p><p>“They built this very nice technology in Mills River, but it cost a lot to run,” recalled Edney. “About that time, Ball and Gerber closed down, so they had a huge water plant with very expensive water and nobody to use it. The necessity of partnering with Henderson County went away and my opinion is, once they knew they didn't need us, they stabbed us in the back (by terminating the agreement).”</p><p>The abiding distrust among former allies is why the General Assembly felt compelled to mandate a regional authority, McGrady said.</p><p>“People keep asking, why is the General Assembly jumping on this? Because the General Assembly wants to resolve these long-standing issues related to water and sewer and get on with other things. Water, in particular, has been a source of friction about every 20 years. Frankly, we want to get that behind us.”</p><p>H.B. 488 will be read on the House floor on Tuesday, April 2, before being referred to several committees. </p><p>Reach Axtell at 828-694-7860 or than.axtell@blueridgenow.com.</p>